This invention pertains to an apparatus and method for mixing liquid flowing through a conduit. More specifically, the invention pertains to a liquid dispenser mixing nozzle and method for mixing a juice or other beverage concentrate together with water or other diluent, prior to dispensation.
Generally the dispersion of a concentrate in a diluent requires mechanical agitation to assure that the mixture of the concentrate and the diluent is homogeneous. A beverage or juice concentrate is normally viscous, and admixture of a viscous concentrate with a fluid such as water, which has a much lesser dynamic viscosity, is best achieved by creating a turbulent flow in the liquids to be combined.
Beverage dispensers customarily available generally provide liquid release spouts or tubes adjacent to one another. Some beverage dispensers provide mixing chambers for combining a concentrate together with water. A disadvantage of such beverage dispensers is that frequently the juice or beverage concentrate is poorly mixed with the diluent liquid, and the resulting beverage may have an inconsistent quality.
Another problem results from the public demand for juice having greater pulp content which makes it even more difficult to properly mix the juice concentrate with the diluent.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus and method for mixing liquid flowing through a conduit.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a means for thorough mixing of a beverage concentrate and a liquid diluent, for use in a commercial beverage dispensing apparatus.
Another object of the present invention is to create a turbulent flow of liquid within a conduit by varying the velocity of flow of a liquid within a mixing chamber, thus creating macroscopic fluctuations in liquid flow through a fluid path in the chamber.
A further object of the present invention is to create open channel flow of liquid through a mixing conduit.
Yet another object of the present invention is to create greater shearing stress of liquid flowing within a fluid mixing conduit by providing a tortuous fluid path having a flow pattern characterized by creating repetitious generating flow of a fluid as it passes through a mixing conduit.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for homogeneous mixing of a concentrate and a diluent, which apparatus has means for connection for use with standardly available beverage dispensers.
A further object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for mixing juice concentrate containing pulp together with a diluent, such that the pulp in the juice concentrate does not become clogged in the mixing apparatus.
Additional objects of the present invention will be clear from the following detailed description of the preferred embodiment of the invention.